Shloka 14
सीता-रावण-संवादः
Sītā–Rāvaṇa Dialogue in the Aśoka Grove
गच्छ जानीहि सौम्येमां कस्य वात्र कुतो5पि वा । किमर्थमागता सुभ्रूरिदं कण्टकितं वनम्,'सौम्य! जाओ, पता लगाओ, यह किसकी स्त्री है और कहाँसे इस वनमें आयी है? यह सुन्दर भौंहोंवाली युवती काँटोंसे भरे हुए इस जंगलमें किसलिये आयी है?
gaccha jānīhi saumya imāṁ kasya vātra kuto 'pi vā | kimartham āgatā subhrūḥ idaṁ kaṇṭakitaṁ vanam ||
“സൗമ്യാ! പോയി അറിയുക—ഇവൾ ആരുടെ ഭാര്യയാണ്, എവിടെ നിന്നാണ് ഇവിടെ വന്നത്. സുന്ദരഭ്രൂവായ ഈ സ്ത്രീ മുള്ളുകൾ നിറഞ്ഞ ഈ വനത്തിലേക്ക് എന്തിനാണ് വന്നത്?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a dharmic impulse toward responsible inquiry: before acting, one should ascertain identity, origin, and purpose—especially when encountering a vulnerable person in a dangerous place—so that protection and assistance can be offered appropriately.
A messenger or attendant is instructed to go and investigate a woman found in a thorn-filled forest—whose wife she is, where she has come from, and why she has entered such a perilous wilderness—setting up the next narrative development.